Hadrian (76-138) was born Publius Aelius Hadrianus and named Roman emperor in 117. Nephew and successor to Trajan, he executed his senatorial opponents, abandoned Trajan’s conquests in Armenia and Mesopotamia, and coped with unrest in Mauretania and Parthia. He traveled widely, and many of his accomplishments were related to his visits abroad. He began construction of Hadrian’s Wall (England), completed the temple of Zeus in . . .